Brownies Enrollment

Here is Crystal being enrolled as a Brownie.

Kels & Mike's reaction

This video was taken the night before we flew out. We had to tell them because Kels had way too much stuff packed in her luggage.

Before I told them we were having supper at iHop and some people we knew from WL were there and they were going to Disneyland the next morning. When they asked what we were doing there I said we are going shopping. Then we ran into them again at our hotel in Disneyland.

We surprised the kids for Fall Break

It is very hard to keep a secret when you are at the airport, they ask too many questions. One fellow said someone is going to Disneyland. When we got to the ticket booth I told them that Crystal does not know so the lady told her we were going to Winnipeg. When we headed down Disney Way Kels played a game with Crystal covering her eyes so she didn't see Disneyland as we drove by. We told her before we checked into our hotel which was across the street from the main entrance. Awesome!

Our Blue Fairy (from Pinocchio)

Halloween Party

Lots of great snacks




Piniata in the dark

Here's the Truth....

Finally, an explanation that makes sense, backed with historical and biblical evidence!
In ancient Israel, it came to pass that a trader by the name of Abraham Com did take unto himself a young wife by the name of Dot. And Dot Com was a comely woman, broad of shoulder and long of leg. Indeed, she was often called Amazon Dot Com.
And she said unto Abraham, her husband, "Why dost thou travel so far from town to town with thy goods when thou canst trade without ever leaving thy tent?"
And Abraham did look at her as though she were several saddle bags short of a camel load, but simply said, "How, dear?"
And Dot replied, "I will place drums in all the towns and drums in between to send messages saying what you have for sale, and they will reply telling you who hath the best price. And the sale can be made on the drums and delivery made by Uriah's Pony Stable (UPS)."
Abraham thought long and decided he would let Dot have her way with the drums. And the drums rang out and were an immediate success. Abraham sold all the goods he had at the top price, without ever having to move from his tent. To prevent neighboring countries from overhearing what the drums were saying, Dot devised a system that only she and the drummers knew. It was known as Must Send Drum Over Sound (MSDOS), and she also developed a language to transmit ideas and pictures - Hebrew To The People (HTTP). And the young men did take to Dot Com's trading as doth the greedy horsefly take to camel dung. They were called Nomadic Ecclesiastical Rich Dominican Sybarites, or NERDS.
And lo, the land was so feverish with joy at the new riches and the deafening sound of drums that no one noticed that the real riches were going to that enterprising drum dealer, Brother William of Gates, who bought off every drum maker in the land. And indeed did insist on drums to be made that would work only with Brother Gates' drumheads and drumsticks.
And Dot did say, "Oh, Abraham, what we have started is being taken over by others." And Abraham looked out over the Bay of Ezekiel , or eBay as it came to be known. He said, "We need a name that reflects what we are."
And Dot replied, "Young Ambitious Hebrew Owner Operators." "YAHOO," said Abraham. And because it was Dot's idea, they named it YAHOO Dot Com.
Abraham's cousin, Joshua, being the young Gregarious Energetic Educated Kid (GEEK) that he was, soon started using Dot's drums to locate things around the countryside. It soon became known as God's Own Official Guide to Locating Everything (GOOGLE).

That is how it all began. And that's the truth.

Trip to The Pumpkin Field

We ran into Caleb, so Crystal went on a hay ride with him.

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving weekend is here! I wanted to take some time out and reflect on what I am thankful for. Many things come to mind,some I can share while others I cannot. But while I was thinking a friend of mine posted on Facebook that her dad died. They had a strained relationship and barely have spoken in years. So this year, I am thankful that I am repairing strained relationships in my life. It's a slow process, but very worth it. I don't even know how we got there (being strained) and I think it has been that way almost my entire life. But I choose to see the good in people, forgive and move on. I contributed to the relationship break down just as much as the other people did. Life is too short to spend time being enemies when you can be friends, laughing and loving together. This weekend I have my family visiting. I will make a nice turkey dinner and enjoy my company. Good times(:

A few more pictures...

We kept the glass display cabinet. I have new hinges and matching pulls that Sean is going to put on. Soon I hope(:

The desk/ phone area. Crystal can do her homework at the desk while I'm busy in the kitchen.

The peninsula/eating bar matches nicely with the dinning room.

This is the main entrance to my kitchen.

Before & After Sneek Peak

We still have a bunch of work to do before I can post some good pictures. The tile by the stove needs put back up. I still have clutter on the countertops. I'm hoping by the end of the weekend that it is all neat and clean. Then I will take some more pictures(:

The Tear Down

The First Day of School

Here's Mike, going to Grade 10

Here's Kels, going to grade 12

Here's Crystal, going to grade 2

OK, so today is actually the second day of school. We missed the first day because we were on holidays and did not know that Tuesday that was supposed to be "Curriculum Implementation Day" was cancelled because of the job action. So, my kids played hooky yesterday. By the time the elementary school called, it was too late to send them. Oops!

The Island is gone

Now we know what was underneath the island and how big our cabinet will need to be because there is no way I want to re-do our floors. Well, at least not yet anyways!

Cute Swan Pool Toy(:

I am so fed up with STUPID drivers

Last night I took Kelsey out for a driving lesson after supper. We appoached a playground zone and my daughter slowed down to just under 30 km/hr. All of a sudden there is a silver mini-van tail gating us. Before I even had time to tell Kels to just pull over and let him by, a White Toyota Pyrus passes both the mini-van and my car. I had time to write down the liscence plate number of the white car. This person driving the Pyrus is a professional Driver. (I am not mentioning the company name, but if you live in this city, you know what company I am talking about) My first thought is what an idiot he is and it made me mad that a professional driver would drive like that. Next thing I know the silver mini-van is passing us. What the heck? I could see the N on the back but he was driving too fast to catch the liscence plate #. The lady walking on the sidewalk stood there with a shocked look on her face. She couldn't believe what just happened either. Shame on both drivers. There is a Reason for playground zones and I wish people would respect the speed limits posted. I hope they get caught before something terrible happens. I am finding that since I've been teaching my daughter to drive, I notice more and more idiots on our roads. The 2 minites they saved speeding could have cost someone their life. I am very discusted and have made a complaint to the RCMP.

Weekend Clean Up

Our back yard was beginning to look like a dirt pile. The leaves from last fall were still blown in the corners on our patio. The dead cedar tress branches that fell to the ground were piling up. Oh and the stairs to the basement...ewe gross! So we started clean up after lunch on Saturday. What a mess. We will have to make a dump run today. Sean finished power washing the patio by 9pm. It looks so much better. The grass is mowed the rose bush trimmed and the dead tree branches are removed. Now we can enjoy the back yard again. Too bad the hard water left water spot/streaks on our windows. Now we need to wash them. I don't do windows, so I am going to town to buy Sean a squeegie(:

I found the note....

Last night I found a note that my 7yr old wrote. It said “I hav a horbel famle. I hayt them.”
I felt a mixture of emotions, as I am sure most parents do. Then I wondered if she really meant it. Then I said to myself, of course she did not mean it. It would have been easier for me though if she would have told me to my face that she hates me. Then I would have an inkling as to why. But to write it down seems disturbing. Then I think she is copying what some of her other friends say about their parents. I was still upset because we have tried so hard to love and be loved by her. How could my daughter whom I love so dearly despise me? Then I think of how brave that was to put it down in writing instead of yelling it to me when she was angry at me. I find that was her way of letting us know that she felt secure enough to put her feelings of anger into words. This note was not hidden in her room, but written in her doodle book that sits in the kitchen where anyone could look at it. “I hate you” is just the first of many zingers our children will spout out when they are angry at us. From Kindergarten to about grade 7, we will hear a number of these zingers, such as: “You always say NO!”, “Dad is nicer than you”, “You’re so unfair!”. The list could go on and on..... Though it is very hard not to boil over at moments like these, the best way to deal with it is to take a deep breath and focus on the emotions, not the word or statements made. I let her know that it is OK to be mad, angry, sad etc. We all feel that way sometimes. I reassured her that even when she is being really naughty and getting into trouble, I still love her and I could never hate her. I may not like what she says or how she acts, but I will always love her because she is my daughter. She told me she wrote the note before her 7th birthday and before we bought her those beautiful dresses. She was upset that I made her wear pants the one day she went to day camp at the park and it was pouring rain and she wanted to wear a dress.
She told me that she doesn’t really hate our family. Then she wrote in her doodle book “ I have a good famile. I love them.”

My attempt at a Barbi Cake

Yummy Angel Food Cake with lots of Whip Cream. Some how Grandma's always looks better than mine.
I can say this cake was made with love(:

Grandpa Knorr's Obit

Camping at Dutch's in Vernon